Walgreens accused of privacy violations
October 28, 2013
US pharmacy giant Walgreens has
been accused of being in violation
of America’s Health Insurance
Portability and Accountability Act
(HIPAA), due to a new patient
servicing model which transfers
the pharmacist from behind the
dispensary to a workstation in front
of the counter.
According to InformationWeek
Healthcare, a report issued by
union-funded Change to Win
Retail Initiatives (CtW), used
data from 100 observations of 50
stores throughout Florida, Illinois
and Indiana in the USA, and the
organisation subsequently filed
a complaint to US Health and
Human Services alleging numerous
breaches of HIPAA.
The problem centres around
Walgreens’ ‘Well Experience’ model
which places the computer screen
and mobile devices such as hand
held tablets in view of the public,
with confidential information
exposed.
According to CtW, in 80% of
stores visited, HIPAA-protected
confidential patient information
was left unattended and potentially
visible to customers in the
pharmacy area.
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